Houston—er, Washington—We Have a Problem — On Wednesday, according to a Capitol Hill source, the Senate Finance Committee distributed to its members a list of about twenty ways to help pay for health care reform. Everything you could imagine was on the list: Taxes on soda and cigarettes.

SEN. ESPADA RETURNING TO DEMOCRATS — POWER IN ALBANY FLIPS AGAIN — ALBANY - Bronx state Sen. Pedro Espada, whose defection to the Republican camp helped trigger the current Senate crisis, will return to the Democratic fold and end the month-long Senate stalemate, The Post has learned.

Ensign paid $96k to mistress's family — Sen. John Ensign's attorney acknowledged Thursday that the Nevada Republican's parents paid nearly $100,000 to the family of his mistress after she and her husband left his staff in April 2008. — In a statement from Paul Coggins, Ensign's attorney …

Coburn Claims Constitutional Shield on Advice to Ensign — Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) on Thursday said he would not testify in court or before the Ethics Committee about any advice he gave Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) on how to handle his affair with a former staffer, citing constitutional protections …

To go forward, GOP must snap out of its Sarah Palin spell — Gov. Sarah Palin is the political train wreck that keeps on giving. First, she was an awful choice last year as John McCain's running mate. I came to this conclusion with regret - I am one of McCain's biggest admirers. — But facts are facts.

Iowa GOP wants Palin at dinner — Iowa Republican Party officials Wednesday said they are aggressively courting Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to headline the state GOP's premier annual fundraising event. — And they have put a well-connected Des Moines woman in charge of trying to land …

Democrats Say C.I.A. Deceived Congress — WASHINGTON — The director of the Central Intelligence Agency, Leon E. Panetta, has told the House Intelligence Committee in closed-door testimony that the C.I.A. concealed “significant actions” from Congress from 2001 until late last month, seven Democratic committee members said.

Mike Allen — Mike Allen is the chief political correspondent for Politico. He comes to us from Time magazine where he was their White House correspondent. Prior to that, Allen spent six years at The Washington Post, where he covered President Bush's first term, Capitol Hill, campaign finance …

Billions in aid go to areas that backed Obama in '08 — WASHINGTON — Billions of dollars in federal aid delivered directly to the local level to help revive the economy have gone overwhelmingly to places that supported President Obama in last year's presidential election.

Akron police investigate teen mob attack on family — Akron police say they aren't ready to call it a hate crime or a gang initiation. — But to Marty Marshall, his wife and two kids, it seems pretty clear. — It came after a family night of celebrating America and freedom with a fireworks show at Firestone Stadium.

Jeb Bush: 'I don't know' if Obama is a socialist — (CNN) - Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush told an interviewer that he could not say whether or not President Barack Obama is a socialist, and that the president would not have been elected if he had been honest with Americans about his agenda.

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